STEEMIT CRYPTOACADEMY, BEGINNERS LEVEL SEASON 3 Week 2| Homework post for professor @awesononso: The Beginning of the Beginning. By @ebuahsang1.
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Question 1. WHAT IS THE GENESIS BLOCK OF A BLOCKCHAIN
Question 2. WRITE ON THE BITCOIN GENESIS BLOCK AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE
Question 3. GO TO https://steemworld.org AND LOCATE THE STEEM GENESIS BLOCK ( Youu must provide screenshots and sign in as a proof of completion)
Question 1. WHAT IS THE GENESIS BLOCK OF A BLOCKCHAIN
During the introductory course at the Beginners level, we were opportune to learn about blockchain in the second task with professor @yousafharoonkhan and he defined blockchain as
A chain of blocks in which information is stored. The blockchain is like the distributor ledger. Therefore, the data in the blockchain is safe in every way.
So if we are saying that a blockchain is a chain of blocks it means the chain of blocks has a start point. It is this start of the chain that we want to discuss here “Genesis block in blockchain”
Genesis Block of a Blockchain.
Getting reference from the bible, genesis stands for beginning or first. Therefore, Genesis block is the premier block in the chain that makes up the blockchain, the very first of block that was created and unlike any other block this block has no previous hash. Indirectly, the Genesis block defines the hash of other blocks. The Genesis Block of a blockchain is referred to as Block 0 but some Blockchains or investors defer with this name and prefer to call it Block 1.
Question 2. WRITE ON THE BITCOIN GENESIS BLOCK AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE
The Genesis block was first mined in January 3, 2009 at about 6:15 PM according to the Timestamp. This gave birth to the first ever cryptocurrency called BITCOIN and became the Bitcoin Genesis Block. Satoshi Nakamoto is known as the creator of Blockchain. It is unknown to the world who Satoshi Nakamoto is as there is no digital or physical footprint of him after the creation of Bitcoin, we don’t know if it was a group of persons or a single person but this technology has resulted to change of millions of life.
Properties of Bitcoin Genesis Blockchain.
- The first miner(s) were rewarded $50BTC which was transferred into an account after mining. This $50BTC remains untouchable to any one. The block has no previous hash as it is the first block.
- Each year or so, some bitcoin miners send BTC to the block, this is like paying tributes to the founder for the wonderful creation.
- The Genesis block had a secret message, "The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second bailout for banks." This message had no clear cut message but most people believe that it was the founder's way of emphazing the purpose of Bitcoin, to break out of the banking system.
Significance of the Bitcoin Genesis Block.
A reference point for the Bitcoin Blockchain.
The Genesis block stands as a reference point of the bitcoin blockchain as it is the originality of all other blocks in the chain, it defines how each block stores information and sets the criteria for a new coin to be mined.
The birth of a new digital currency which inspired new currencies.
The creation of the Genesis block meant the first digital currency, this inspired the creation of many other currencies in the market. As of date of this post, there are over 10,000 cryptocurrencies all thanks to the bitcoin Genesis block.
A new way of doing business.
The traditional system of banks had a centralized system where authorities control every financial and nonfinancial information. The government could dictate what will happen in the economy and how individuals ought to use money. The creation of the genesis Block brought decentralization, a new way of doing things where individuals could decide what to do with their money and not necessarily a central authority.
Removal of the middle man.
Furthermore, the Genesis block helped in eliminating the middle man between financial transaction as users could trade directly with others and not necessarily use a bank or a middle man. Birth of the Blockchain Technology The creation of Bitcoin Genesis block is the first application of Blockchain idea which was dormant for long. This gave opportunities for the blockchain to be reestablished in real life and the world is moving to a point where blockchain technology is being used in daily life to solve complex problems.
Question 3. GO TO https://steemworld.org AND LOCATE THE STEEM GENESIS BLOCK ( Youu must provide screenshots and sign in as a proof of completion)
It is worth noting that every cryptocurrency has a Genesis block like that of bitcoin. In steem, the Genesis block can be found in https://steemworld.org and unlike the bitcoin, the Genesis block is depicted as Block 1. Below is the procedure of how the we can locate the Steem Genesis block.
- Go to https://steemworld.org Click on Block explorer.
- Then a dialog box appears Block Number and 1 will be in the box, click on ok
- You will be able to sign in at the Top right corner, just click on sign in, the input you username and private posting key.
- As can be seen below, I have successfully signed in to the block 1 of Steem.
Conclusion
Its can be seen from the lecture and the assignment that the creation of the Genesis Block was the most significant innovation in recent times. There have huge and significant technological advancement that have stemmed from the blockchain technology.
Obviously, the Genesis block is the most important Block in the Blockchain as most of the other blocks originated from it and take the form of the Genesis Block. I want to thank the professor for this wonderful lecture, I suddenly feel like a blockchain guru.
CC.
@awesononso